The human heart is a complex and critical pump. Various pathologies can make the heart become dysfunctional, acutely or chronically. Heart failure can be treated with pharmacologic therapy and/or heart transplantation. Mechanical assistance is another therapeutic option for heart failure. For example, an afflicted person waiting to receive a transplant may receive mechanical assistance until a donor heart is available.
Blood pumps are commonly used to provide mechanical assistance or augmentation to the pumping performed by the left and/or right ventricles of the heart. For example, an implantable pump can be connected in parallel with the person's heart and implanted adjacent to the heart, in contact with the heart, or in a remote location such as the abdomen and inside or outside of the thoracic cavity in the chest area. A blood pump supplementing a ventricle is known as a ventricular assist device, or VAD. A VAD is useful when the ventricle alone cannot provide adequate blood flow. A pump can also completely replace the function of a ventricle.